I became homeless in July 2023 after a psychotic episode and a divorce. I had my friend take me to the Women’s Mission. I was promised a bed, multiple resources, a case manager to help with my mental illness, three meals a day, clothing, etc.
I was given a very thin blanket and a mat to sleep on the floor for the first week. I may have slept two hours a night that first week, not good for mental or physical health. My case manager was very rude, as were 90 percent of the people who ran the Mission. There were only two bathrooms with showers to accommodate 600 women.
The meals were horrible also. Breakfast consisted of rice, hard french fries, fake sausage and some mornings a hard boiled egg. Lunch and dinner weren’t much better. I was really happy with the hard boiled egg though. We were not allowed to take food or drinks into the Mission. There were vending machines, but I never had money for those. I went hungry a lot of days at the Mission.
I was given one pair of jeans to wear and no way to do laundry. When I could get in the shower, I was putting dirty clothes back on. I lived at the Mission for three and a half weeks when I felt like the employees there forced me on the streets because of the way they treated me. They did not try to, “build anyone up.” Instead they kicked us while we were down.
I discovered that there were so many resources on the street. Certain places would give clothes, shoes, blankets, meals, bus passes, etc! There were no resources to be had at the Mission.
On September 28. 2023, I was told about The Contributor newspaper. Wow! I was put on a list for housing, applied for food stamps and received a free bus pass anytime I bought papers. And they serve breakfast before every meeting. The best part is the volunteers. They actually treat the vendors like human beings, and will do anything to help you succeed in life, you just have to put in the footwork. When you do get housing, they furnish your apartment. They go above and beyond to make sure the vendors have what they need.
I have told many of my homeless friends, “If you want to get off the streets, go to The Contributor paper office, not the Mission.”